Soaked Dunkin Donuts staff, school board members take the Ice Bucket Challenge

Thursday

Sep 4, 2014 at 3:15 AM

By John Nolanjnolan@fosters.com

ROCHESTER — On a day when celebrity Dolly Parton was accepting the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in Nashville, Tenn., about 1,000 miles to the northeast as the crow flies, a locally famous group was doing likewise.

Answering the challenge from School District administrators, eight members of the Rochester School Board stood on the steps of Spaulding High School, last Thursday, and steeled themselves to be drenched in buckets of icy water, as a way of raising money for research into ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Each participant in the challenge donates $10 to the charity.

The very next day, on East Rochester’s Highland Street, the staff of Dunkin Dunuts, answered a challenge from another branch in Portsmouth — though Friday was not quite as toasty as the scorching Thursday.

Taking part at the high school were School Board members Audrey Stevens, Jenn Bryant, Karen Stokes, Paul Lynch, Anthony Pastelis, Dan Harkinson, Bob Watson and Matt Pappas. Each member was assigned a volunteer with an ice-laced bucket of water, but before the synchronized drenching, Pastelis made a short speech, which contained a challenge to Rochester City Council and Rochester Police Commission members to do likewise.

Among the spectators at Spaulding looking on was Supt. Mike Hopkins, who videotaped the action for the Internet, in accordance with the Ice Bucket Challenge requirements. The action, as well as that of the administrators’ soaking, can be viewed on the school district’s blog at http://rochesterschools.edublogs.org/.

Also spectating was Mayor TJ Jean, who, earlier in August, had taken the Ice Bucket Challenge along with staff of the Gafney Home, where he serves as the administrator.

It was not lost on the mayor that last Thursday was one of the warmest days of the year, with the temperature in the uppers 80s.

“We had a day that was chilly,” he recalled.

That comment cut no ice with School Board member Stevens.

““It was cold, much colder than I thought it was going to be. I was shocked. Oh, my gosh, said Stevens, adding, “It is for a great cause, and I was glad to help them out.”

Stevens also noted that School Board member Julie Brown would have participated, too, but was advised not to, on account of her pacemaker.”

“Julie was there in spirit,” said Stevens.

The ALS website, on Aug. 27, recorded that funds raised through the Ice Bucket Challenge — enthusiasm for which is still sweeping the country — had reached an astonishing $94.3 million, since it was launched on July 29.

The Rochester School Board members’ and Dunkin Donuts’ staff contributions will now help nudge that total over the $100 million mark.

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